17 22<\/strong>. Judgment on Israel under the figure of a smelting furnace. Israel is dross and base metal, which must be flung into the furnace.<\/p>\n The fifth word of judgment. The furnace. In the besieged city the people shall be tried and purged.<\/P> Eze 22:18<\/B><\/span><\/P> Dross – <\/B>A frequent metaphor which denotes not only the corruption of the people, who have become like base metal, but also a future purification whereby, the dross being burned away, the remnant of good may appear.<\/P> <\/p>\n And the word of the Lord came unto me<\/strong>,…. The word of prophecy from the Lord, as the Targum:<\/p>\n saying<\/strong>; as follows:<\/p>\n Refining of Israel in the Furnace of Besieged Jerusalem<\/p>\n Eze 22:17<\/span>. And the word of Jehovah came to me, saying, <\/em> Eze 22:18<\/span>. Son of man, the house of Israel has become to me as dross; they are all brass, and tin, and iron, and lead in the furnace; dross of silver have they become. <\/em> Eze 22:19<\/span>. Therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah, Because ye have all become dross, therefore, behold, I gather you together in Jerusalem. <\/em> Eze 22:20<\/span>. As men gather together silver, and brass, and iron, and lead, and tin into the furnace, to blow the fire upon it for melting, so will I gather (you) together in my anger and my wrath, and put you in and melt you. <\/em> Eze 22:21<\/span>. And I will collect you together, and blow the fire of my wrath upon you, that ye may be melted therein. <\/em> Eze 22:22<\/span>. As silver is melted in the furnace, so shall ye be melted therein (viz., in Jerusalem), and shall learn that I Jehovah have poured out my wrath upon you.<\/em> – This second word of God rests no doubt upon the figure in Eze 22:15<\/span><\/em>, of the uncleanness or dirt of sin; but it is not an exposition of the removal of the dirt, as predicted there. For that was to be effected through the dispersion of Israel among the nations, whereas the word of God, from Eze 22:17<\/span> onwards, represents the siege awaiting Jerusalem as a melting process, through which God will separate the silver ore contained in Israel from the baser metals mingled with it. In Eze 22:18<\/span> it commences with a description of the existing condition of Israel. It has turned to dross. is clearly a perfect, and is not to be taken as a prophetical future, as Kliefoth proposes. Such a rendering is not only precluded by the clause ‘ in Eze 22:19<\/span>, cut could only be made to yield an admissible sense by taking the middle clause of the verse, “all of them brass and tin,” etc., as a statement of what Israel had become, or as a preterite in opposition to all the rules of Hebrew syntax, inasmuch as this clause merely furnishes an explanation of . , which only occurs here, for signifies dross, not smelting-ore (Kliefoth), literally, recedanea <\/em>, the baser ingredients which are mixed with the silver, and separated from it by smelting. This is the meaning here, where it is directly afterwards interpreted as consisting of brass, tin, iron, and lead, and then still further defined as , dross of silver, i.e., brass, tin, iron, and lead, with a mixture of silver. Because Israel had turned into silver-dross of this kind, the Lord would gather it together in Jerusalem, to smelt it there as in a smelting furnace; just as men gather together brass, iron, lead, and tin in a furnace to smelt them, or rather to separate the silver contained thereon. , literally, a collection of silver, etc., for “like a collection.” The simil<\/em>. is probably omitted for the sake of euphony, to avoid the discord occasioned by prefixing it to . Ezekiel mentions the silver as well, because there is some silver contained in the brass, iron, etc., or the dross is silver-dross. , nomen verbale <\/em>, from in the Hiphil<\/em>, smelting; literally, as the smelting of silver takes place in the furnace. The smelting is treated here simply as a figurative representation of punishment, and consequently the result of the smelting, namely, the refining of the silver by the removal of the baser ingredients, is not referred to any further, as in the case in Isa 1:22<\/span>, Isa 1:25<\/span>; Jer 6:27-30<\/span>; Mal 3:2-3<\/span>. This smelting process was experienced by Israel in the last siege of Jerusalem by the Chaldeans.<\/p>\n The Sins of Jerusalem.<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/I><\/span><\/P> <\/TD> B. C.<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN> 591.<\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/SPAN><\/FONT><\/P> <\/TD> <\/TR> <\/TABLE> 17 And the word of the LORD<\/B> came unto me, saying, 18 Son of man, the house of Israel is to me become dross: all they are<\/I> brass, and tin, and iron, and lead, in the midst of the furnace; they are even<\/I> the dross of silver. 19 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD<\/B>; Because ye are all become dross, behold, therefore I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem. 20 As<\/I> they gather silver, and brass, and iron, and lead, and tin, into the midst of the furnace, to blow the fire upon it, to melt it;<\/I> so will I gather you<\/I> in mine anger and in my fury, and I will leave you there,<\/I> and melt you. 21 Yea, I will gather you, and blow upon you in the fire of my wrath, and ye shall be melted in the midst thereof. 22 As silver is melted in the midst of the furnace, so shall ye be melted in the midst thereof; and ye shall know that I the LORD<\/B> have poured out my fury upon you.<\/P> The same melancholy string is still harped upon, and various turns are given it, to make it affecting, that it may be influencing. The prophet must here show, or at least it is here shown him, that the whole house of Israel has become as dross and that as dross they shall be consumed. What David has said concerning the wicked ones of the world is here said concerning the wicked ones of the church, now that it is corrupt and degenerate (Ps. cxix. 119<\/span>): Thou puttest away all the wicked of the earth like dross.<\/I><\/P> I. See here how the wretched degeneracy of the house of Israel is described. That state, in David’s and Solomon’s time, had been a head of gold;<\/I> when the kingdoms were divided it was as the arms of silver.<\/I> But now, 1. It has degenerated into baser metal, of no value in comparison with what it formerly was: They are all brass, and tin, and iron, and lead,<\/I> which some make to signify divers sorts of sinners among them. Their being brass denotes the impudence of some in their wickedness; they are brazen-faced,<\/I> and cannot blush; their shoes<\/I> had been iron and brass<\/I> (Deut. xxxiii. 25<\/span>), but now their brow is so, Isa. xlviii. 4<\/span>. Their being tin denotes the hypocritical profession of piety with which many of them cover their iniquity; they have a specious show, but no intrinsic worth. Their being iron denotes the cruel disposition of some, and their delight in war, according to the character of the iron age.<\/I> Their being lead denotes their dulness, sottishness, and stupidity: though soft and pliable to evil, yet heavy and not movable to good. How has the gold become dross! How has the most fine gold changed!<\/I> So is Jerusalem’s degeneracy bewailed, Lam. iv. 1<\/span>. Yet this is not the worst; these metals, though of less value, are yet of good use. But, 2. The house of Israel has become dross to me.<\/I> So she is in God’s account, whatever she is in her own and her neighbours’ account. They were silver, but now they are even the dross of silver;<\/I> the word signifies all the dirt, and rubbish, and worthless stuff, that are separated from the silver in the washing, melting, and refining of it. Note, Sinners, and especially degenerate professors, are in God’s account as dross, vile, and contemptible, and of no account, as the evil figs<\/I> which could not be eaten, they were so evil.<\/I> They are useless and fit for nothing; of no consistency with themselves and no service to man.<\/P> II. How the woeful destruction of this degenerate house of Israel is foretold. They are all gathered together in Jerusalem; thither people fled from all parts of the country as to a city of refuge, not only because it was a strong city, but because it was the holy city. Now God tells them that their flocking into Jerusalem, which they intended for their security, should be as the gathering of various sorts of metal into the furnace or crucible, to be melted down, and to have the dross separated from them. They are in the midst of Jerusalem,<\/I> surrounded by the forces of the enemy; and, being thus enclosed, 1. The fire of God’s wrath<\/I> shall be kindled upon this furnace, and it shall be blown,<\/I> to make it burn fiercely and strongly, Eze 22:20<\/span>; Eze 22:21<\/span>. God will gather them in his anger and fury.<\/I> The blowing of the fire makes a great noise, so will the judgments of God upon Jerusalem. When God stirs up himself to execute judgments upon a provoking people, from the consideration of his own glory and the necessity of making some examples, then he may be said to blow the fire of his wrath<\/I> against sin and sinners, to heat the furnace seven times hotter.<\/I> 2. The several sorts of metal gathered in it shall be melted; by a complication of judgments, as by a raging fire, their constitution shall be dissolved, they shall lose all their former shape and strength, and shall be utterly unable to stand before the wrath of God. The various sorts of sinners shall be melted down together, and united in a common overthrow, as brass<\/I> and lead<\/I> in the same furnace, as trees are bound in bundles for the fire.<\/I> They came together into Jerusalem as a place of defence, but God brought them together there as unto a place of execution. 3. God will leave them in the furnace (v.<\/I><\/span> 20<\/span>): I will gather you into the furnace<\/I> and will leave you there.<\/I> When God brings his own people into the furnace he sits by them, as the refiner by his gold, to see that they be not continued there any longer than is fitting and needful; but he will bring these people into the furnace, as men throw dross into it, which they design shall be consumed, and therefore are in no care about it, but leave it there.<\/I> Compare with this Hos. v. 14<\/span>, I will tear and go away.<\/I> 4. Hereby the dross shall be wholly separated and the good metal purified, the impenitent shall be destroyed and the penitent reformed and fitted for deliverance. Take away the dross from the silver, and there shall come forth a vessel for the finer,<\/I> Prov. xxv. 4<\/I><\/span>. This judgment shall do that in the house of Israel for the doing of which other methods had been tried in vain, and reprobate silver shall they no more be called,<\/I> Jer. vi. 30<\/I><\/span>.<\/P> <\/p>\n PARABLE OF THE DROSS IN THE FURNANCE<\/strong><\/p>\n Verses 17-22:<\/strong><\/p>\n Verses 17, 18 recount <\/strong>the Lord’s transitional directions to Ezekiel to move to give a further form of warning to Israel. He was directed to advise Israel that she had become dross to Him, as worthless offing, 1Ki 22:11<\/span>; Psa 119:110<\/span>; Isa 1:22<\/span>; Jer 6:28<\/span>; Jer 6:30<\/span>. She was to be as a furnace in which fire was to burn her dross, in the city of Jerusalem, under siege by the Chaldean armed hordes, Psa 119:119<\/span>; Isa 1:22<\/span>; Jer 6:28<\/span>. All citizens of Jerusalem had become as brass, tin, iron, and lead in the midst of the furnace where they, as silver were to have the dross burned away, separated. For they had become a compound of wickedness.<\/p>\n Verse 19 concludes <\/strong>that the Lord had stated that because all in Jerusalem had become dross (offing) from precious metal, He would gather them in the midst of Jerusalem to burn them, purify them as in a furnace. Their wickedness had compounded till He would forebear no longer, Psa 7:11-12<\/span>.<\/p>\n Verse 20<\/strong> explains that as smelters gather silver, brass, lead, iron, and tin into the furnace to blow the white-heat fire on it to melt it, so would the Lord gather the Israelites into Jerusalem to burn them or melt them, to make their dross sins real to them, Num 32:23<\/span>.<\/p>\n Verses 21, 22 declare <\/strong>again, for strong emphasis that He will, with determined counsel, gather Israel into Jerusalem to blow upon them with His anger, that they should be melted before Him, Eze 20:8<\/span>; Eze 20:33<\/span>; as also described Jer 6:28-30<\/span>.<\/p>\n (Eze. 22:17-22<\/span>.)<\/p>\n EXEGETICAL NOTES.Jerusalem besieged by her enemies is the furnace in which God will refine His people Israel.<\/p>\n Eze. 22:17<\/span>. The word of the Lord came unto me.<\/strong> This second word of God rests, no doubt, upon the figure in Eze. 22:15<\/span>, of the uncleanness or dirt of sin; but it is not an exposition of the removal of the dirt as predicted there. For that was to be effected through the dispersion of Israel among the nations, whereas the word of God, from Eze. 22:17<\/span> onwards, represents the siege awaiting Jerusalem as a melting process, through which God will separate the silver ore contained in Israel from the baser metals mingled with it.(Keil<\/em>.)<\/p>\n Eze. 22:18<\/span>. The house of Israel is to Me become dross; all they are brass, and tin, and iron, and lead, in the midst of the furnace; they are even the dross of silver<\/strong>. Some kinds of silver ore contain a large amount of copper, iron, and lead, with other impurities. The inhabitants of Judea are described as a mass of the baser metals intermixed with the impure residue of silver. The good silver had been drained out of Judah by death or exile, and those who remained had altogether become a compound of wickedness.<\/p>\n Eze. 22:20<\/span>. So will I gather you in Mine anger and in My fury, and I will leave you there, and melt you.<\/strong> The smelting is treated here simply as a figurative representation of punishment, and consequently the result of the smelting, namely, the refining of the silver by the removal of the baser ingredients, is not referred to any further, as is the case in Isa. 1:22<\/span>; Isa. 1:25<\/span>; Jer. 6:27-30<\/span>; Mal. 3:2-3<\/span>. This smelting process was experienced by Israel in the last siege of Jerusalem by the Chaldeans.(Keil<\/em>). In the spiritual department, the silver may become altogether dross. The furnace<\/em> is Jerusalem, according to its destination to serve for a smelting pot. Dross of silver is silver that has become dross. They are all gathered into Jerusalem (Eze. 22:19<\/span>), as the people far and wide, under the pressure of the foe, seek refuge in the fortified city. In the whole section the judgment is regarded not in the light of purification, but in that of destruction, as Ezekiel usually considers the population of Jerusalem as an ungodly multitude doomed to be extirpated.(Hengstenberg<\/em>).<\/p>\n Eze. 22:22<\/span>. As silver is melted in the midst of the furnace.<\/strong> In modern metallurgy, lead is employed for the purpose of purifying silver from other mineral products. The alloy is mixed with lead exposed to fusion upon an earthen vessel, and submitted to a blast of air. By this means the dross is consumed. This process is called the cupelling operation, with which the description in Eze. 22:18-22<\/span> accurately coincides. The vessel containing the alloy is surrounded by the fire, or placed in the midst of it, and the blowing is not applied to the fire but to the fused metals. And when this is done, nothing but the perfect metals, gold and silver, can resist the scorifying influence. In Jer. 6:28-30<\/span>, we have a perfect description of this process. If we take silver having the impurities in it described in the text, namely, iron, copper and tin, and mix it with lead, and place it in the fire upon a cupell, it soon melts; the lead will oxidize and form a thick, coarse crust upon the surface and thus consume away, but effecting no purifying influence. The alloy remains, if anything, worse than before. The silver is not refined because the bellows were burned, there existed nothing to blow upon it.(Smiths Dict. of the Bicle, art. Lead<\/em>).<\/p>\n HOMILETICS<\/em><\/p>\n God has a threefold smelting furnace. <\/p>\n 1. Of sin<\/em>. In which one can become dross. <\/p>\n 2. Of trial<\/em>. In which furnace the silver is tested. <\/p>\n 3. Of judgment<\/em>. In which even the dross is consumed.Lange<\/em>.<\/p>\n 1. Churches and states may degenerate from their preciousness and purity, into vileness and profaneness<\/em>. It was full of judgment, and righteousness lodged in it (Isa. 1:21-23<\/span>), but instead of these, now there was oppression and murder. Thy silver is become dross, thy wine is mixed with water. Thy money is counterfeit, and thy wine corrupt. Whatever was pure in thee is now corrupted, the law is corrupted with false expositions, the worship is corrupted with idols and human traditions, justice is corrupted with bribery and cruel oppressions, chastity and sobriety are corrupted with lewd and unclean practices. Rome was once a golden city for her faith and holiness (Rom. 1:8<\/span>; Rom. 16:19<\/span>); but now is so corrupt in doctrine, worship, and manners, that she is become the mother of harlots and abominations (Rev. 17:5<\/span>). The Seven Churches were once golden candlesticks, but through their corruptions and weaknesses, they soon degenerated into dross. <\/p>\n 2. Men professing godliness, and living ungodlily, are not acceptable to God, nor fit materials of a church<\/em>. The house of Israel is to Me become dross; they profess My name, and so judge themselves good silver; but they live wickedly, and to Me they are no better than dross, than brass, tin, iron and lead, too base materials to make a temple for Me to dwell in, or a candlestick for Me to set a prophetical light in. Whatever profession they make, whatever parts or privileges they have, they are no silver, but the dross, the excrements of silver, which defile, disgrace the name, the Church, the ordinances of God, and must be separated from the gold and silver (2Co. 6:17<\/span>). Many that appear silver unto men will be found dross unto God. Hypocrites and wicked ones are dross; only hypocrites are the dross of silver. <\/p>\n 3. The greatest part of professors, when they come to the trial, will be found corrupt and naught<\/em>. All they are brass, and tin, and iron, and lead, in the midst of the furnace. The furnace discovered them to be base metal. The number of sincere and silver-like Christians will be few. <\/p>\n 4. Those who degenerate from God and His ways shall meet with fury and fire from the Lord<\/em> (Eze. 22:21<\/span>). When the church of Ephesus decayed in her first love, that of Pergamos turned aside to the doctrines of Balaam and the Nicolaitanes, that of Thyatira to the teachings and seductions of Jezebel; when Sardis abated in her zeal, and Laodicea became lukewarm, the Lord threatened them severely, and at last brake the candlesticks, and put out the lights (Rev. 2:3<\/span>). God will put away all the wicked of the earth from Him like dross (Psa. 119:119<\/span>). <\/p>\n 5. Melting and consuming judgments upon a people are the wrath of God, whoever be the executioners thereof<\/em>. Nebuchadnezzar should besiege Jerusalem, and make it like a furnace to melt and consume the Jews, and this the Lord owns to be His doing (Eze. 22:22<\/span>). The enemies of Jerusalem were but the vials or vessels by which the fury of God was poured out.(Greenhill.)<\/em><\/p>\n B. The Smelting Furnace 22:1722<\/p>\n TRANSLATION<\/strong><\/p>\n (17) And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, (18) Son of man, the house of Israel has become to Me dross; all of them are bronze and tin and iron and lead in the midst of a furnace; they are the dross of silver. (19) Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD: Because all of you have become dross, therefore, behold, I am about to gather you into the midst of Jerusalem. (20) As they gather silver, and bronze and iron and lead and tin into the midst of a furnace to blow the fire upon it to melt it, thus I will gather you in My wrath and fury, and I will cast you in, and melt you. (21) And I will gather you, and I will breathe upon you with the fire of My wrath, and you shall be melted in the midst of it. (22) As silver is melted in the midst of the furnace, thus you shall be melted in the midst of it; and you shall know that I the LORD have poured out My wrath upon you.<\/p>\n COMMENTS<\/strong><\/p>\n The thought in Eze. 22:15<\/span> that the exile would purge the filthiness from Judah is amplified in the present paragraph. The house of Israel, i.e., Judah, has become like a metallic ore, a mixture of various minerals and impurities which must undergo a smelting process. They once were silver; now they are dross, i.e., worthless (Eze. 22:18<\/span>). Jerusalem where the inhabitants would gather to make their last stand would serve as the symbolic furnace in which the refining process would begin (Eze. 22:19<\/span>). The wrath and fury of the Lord would be the fire which would heat that furnace (Eze. 22:20-21<\/span>). But through the holocaust the precious silver the spiritual remnant would become evident. All the inhabitants of that place would know that they had experienced the judgmental fury of the one true and living God (Eze. 22:22<\/span>).<\/p>\n The House of Israel Who Are Full of Impurity.<\/p>\n <\/strong><\/p>\n ‘And the word of Yahweh came to me saying, “Son of man, the house of Israel is become dross to me, all of them are brass and tin and iron and lead in the midst of the furnace. They are the dross of silver.”<\/p>\n In this second oracle ‘the house of Israel’ are described as dross, the impurities that are left when the silver is purified. And while the main idea is of ‘the house of Israel’ in Jerusalem and Judah, there is an implication in the use of the term that it also includes much of Israel far and wide. They are impure and unworthy.<\/p>\n We may here see it as meaning that brass, tin, iron and lead, which were of a lesser value in themselves, were to silver as comparative dross, for Ezekiel is not speaking as a metallurgist. To him compared with silver they are nothing. They are equal to the dross of silver. On the other hand some see it as meaning that Israel are as the dross of all these impure metals when they are refined.<\/p>\n It is important to see that, unlike other Old Testament passages, the idea here is not that they will be refined, but that they will be destroyed as worthless dross.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/strong> The Corruption of Judah inviting Destruction<\/p>\n v. 17. And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,<\/strong> <\/p>\n v. 18. Son of man, the house of Israel is to Me become dross,<\/strong> the refuse of the purer metals, thrown out as unfit for fine use; all they are brass, and tin, and iron, and lead in the midst of the furnace,<\/strong> all the baser metals, unfit for the divine Refiner’s purpose; they are even the dross of silver,<\/strong> full of impurity. <\/p>\n v. 19. Therefore, thus saith the Lord God, Because ye are all become dross,<\/strong> impure with idolatry and other wickedness, behold, therefore I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem,<\/strong> heaped together like quartz in a furnace. <\/p>\n v. 20. As they gather silver, and brass, and iron, and lead, and tin into the midst of the furnace,<\/strong> the baser metals being mixed with the precious and the object being to separate them, to blow the fire upon it, to melt it,<\/strong> the process resulting in an almost pure extraction of the nobler metal, so will I gather you in Mine anger and in My fury,<\/strong> in carrying out the contemplated judgment upon Jerusalem and Judah, and I will leave you there and melt you. <\/strong> Note that the process of refining is not used in the figure, the smelting as such being a picture of the avenging wrath of God. <\/p>\n v. 21. Yea, I will gather you and blow upon you in the fire of My wrath,<\/strong> as silver alloyed with baser metals is submitted to a blast of air in the so-called cupeling process, and ye shall be melted in the midst thereof. <\/p>\n v. 22. As silver is melted in the midst of the furnace, so shall ye be melted in the midst thereof,<\/strong> Judah experiencing this operation during the last siege of the city; and ye shall know that I, the Lord, have poured out My fury upon you. <\/strong> Having thus set forth the punishment upon Jerusalem, the Lord proceeds to show the corruptness of all classes of people in Judah. <\/p>\n v. 23. And the word of the Lord came unto me, saying,<\/strong> <\/p>\n v. 24. Son of man, say unto her,<\/strong> namely, to Jerusalem and Judah, Thou art the land that is not cleansed,<\/strong> namely, from the weeds, briars, and thorns with which it is overgrown, or upon which the sun does not shine in due season, nor rained upon in the day of indignation,<\/strong> that is, from which the Lord withholds fruitfulness on account of its wickedness. <\/p>\n v. 25. There is a conspiracy of her prophets in the midst thereof,<\/strong> self-appointed teachers and leaders as these false prophets were, like a roaring lion ravening the prey they have devoured souls,<\/strong> the fierceness and cruelty of their actions being in evidence throughout; they have taken the treasure and precious things,<\/strong> property and jewels in possession of the people; they have made her many widows in the midst thereof,<\/strong> for pious men were put to death by them. <\/p>\n v. 26. Her priests,<\/strong> who held the office of keepers and protectors of the Law, have violated My Law,<\/strong> since they did the very things from which they were supposed to keep the people by their warnings, and have profaned Mine holy things,<\/strong> by not observing them with the proper respect, Cf Zep 3:4<\/span>; they have put no difference between the holy and profane, neither have they showed difference between the unclean and the clean,<\/strong> Lev 10:10-11<\/span>, that is, they calmly disregarded the ordinances of the Lord concerning these distinctions, and have hid their eyes from My Sabbaths,<\/strong> by neglecting the law of the Sabbath, and I am profaned among them,<\/strong> for all these acts detracted from the Lord’s glory. <\/p>\n v. 27. Her princes in the midst thereof,<\/strong> the leaders and chief protectors of the people, are like wolves ravening the prey, to shed blood, and to destroy souls, to get dishonest gain,<\/strong> the civil rulers thus siding with the church powers in performing deeds of wickedness. <\/p>\n v. 28. And her prophets have daubed them with untempered mortar,<\/strong> Cf.Ezekiel 13:10, by flattering the people with false assurances of peace and safety, seeing vanity,<\/strong> unfounded promises of good, and divining lies unto them, saying, Thus saith the Lord God, when the Lord hath not spoken. <\/p>\n v. 29. The people of the land,<\/strong> following the bad example of their leaders, have used oppression,<\/strong> practicing extortion and violence in every form, and exercised robbery,<\/strong> either open or hidden, and have vexed the poor and needy, Cf.Ezekiel 18:7; yea, they have oppressed the stranger wrongfully,<\/strong> in spite of the earnest warnings of the Lord concerning this practice, Exo 22:20-21<\/span>; Deu 24:17<\/span>. <\/p>\n v. 30. And I sought for a man among them that should make up the hedge,<\/strong> building up a wall against these various acts of wickedness, and stand in the gap before Me for the land,<\/strong> to close up the breach and make intercession for Judah, that I should not destroy it; but I found none,<\/strong> the moral degeneration was such as to leave even the few righteous without the power to do anything. <\/p>\n v. 31. Therefore have I poured out Mine indignation upon them,<\/strong> as explained above; I have consumed them with the fire of My wrath,<\/strong> in melting them in the furnace of His punishment; their own way have I recompensed upon their heads, saith the Lord God,<\/strong> punishing them in exact agreement with their wicked deeds. It is this fact, that they themselves have brought the evil fate upon them, which will cause many wicked the greatest torment in the last great punishment. <\/p>\n The figure here is very striking of dross, the refuse of the coarser metals, brass, iron, lead, and tin; whereas Jerusalem in her holy days had been of the purest gold. The very streets were full of silver as stones in the days of Solomon. But, alas! it must be now said with the Prophet, How is the gold become dim how is the most fine gold changed? 1Ki 10:27<\/span> ; Lam 4:1<\/span> . Reader! think what a striking representation this is also, in a spiritual sense, in the ruin wrought in our whole nature by the fall! Think also, at the same time, how blessed the change wrought in the circumstances of the Church, in the recovery of His redeemed by the Lord Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n Eze 22:17 And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,<\/p>\n Ver. 17. And the word of the Lord<\/strong> ] See Eze 18:1<\/span> .<\/p>\n NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Eze 22:17-22<\/p>\n 17And the word of the LORD came to me, saying, 18Son of man, the house of Israel has become dross to Me; all of them are bronze and tin and iron and lead in the furnace; they are the dross of silver. 19Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD, ‘Because all of you have become dross, therefore, behold, I am going to gather you into the midst of Jerusalem. 20As they gather silver and bronze and iron and lead and tin into the furnace to blow fire on it in order to melt it, so I will gather you in My anger and in My wrath and I will lay you there and melt you. 21I will gather you and blow on you with the fire of My wrath, and you will be melted in the midst of it. 22As silver is melted in the furnace, so you will be melted in the midst of it; and you will know that I, the LORD, have poured out My wrath on you.’<\/p>\n Eze 22:17-22 This is a metaphor from ancient metallurgy. YHWH calls Jerusalem a mixture of metals, which made them absolutely useless (cf. Jer 6:27-30). The mixture was the Mosaic Covenant with Egyptian idolatry and Canaanite idolatry. YHWH would melt them so as to remove the useless metals (cf. Isa 1:22; Isa 1:25).<\/p>\n Eze 22:21 As so often Ezekiel uses terms normally reserved for a positive connotation in a shockingly negative way. In this verse gather (BDB 488, KB 484, Piel PERFECT) is used in a judgment sense, but usually it refers to a gathering of Israelites from among the nations where they have been exiles (cf. Eze 39:28; Psa 147:2).<\/p>\n Eze 22:17-22<\/p>\n Eze 22:17-22<\/p>\n “And the word of Jehovah came unto me, saying, Son of man, the house of Israel is become dross unto me: all of them are brass and fin and iron and lead, in the midst of the silver; they are the dross of the silver. Therefore thus saith the Lord Jehovah: Because ye are all become dross, therefore, behold, I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem. As they gather silver and brass and iron and lead and tin into the midst of the furnace, to blow the fire upon it, to melt it; so will I gather you in mine anger and in my wrath, and I will lay you there, and melt you.”<\/p>\n Yea, I will gather you, and blow upon you with the fire of my wrath, and ye shall be melted in the midst thereof. As silver is melted in the midst of the furnace, so shall ye be melted in the midst thereof; and ye shall know that I, Jehovah, have poured out my wrath upon you.<\/p>\n The figure of this illustration is that of a smelter or furnace in which dross is separated from silver; “But this is no `refining’ operation which we have here, because Israel is all dross, every one, high and low alike.<\/p>\n “I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem …” (Eze 22:19). Keil thought that this reference to Jerusalem, “Is somewhat out of place, inasmuch as the preceding Word of God referred not to the city, but to `The House of Israel’ (Eze 22:18). Keil failed to take into consideration that God here promised to “gather” the House of Israel into Jerusalem for the purpose of making a smelting furnace of the whole city; thus, the reference to Jerusalem is absolutely correct. (see Eze 22:19).<\/p>\n When the siege of Jerusalem began by the king of Babylon, the whole population of Palestine, encompassing all of `the House of Israel’ that remained, poured into Jerusalem for protection. This is a prophecy that, “Under the stress of the siege, Jerusalem would become a furnace in which they all shall be melted by the fierce heat of the Divine anger.<\/p>\n Reciprocal: Amo 4:11 – yet<\/p>\n Eze 22:17-18. Dross is the worthless material that is found in silver ore, and the article is used to illustrate the sunken value of Judah in the Lords sight.<\/p>\n Coming refining 22:17-22<\/span><\/p>\n Accusation marks the preceding oracle, and judgment marks this one.<\/p>\nFuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: The Preacher’s Complete Homiletical Commentary Edited by Joseph S. Exell<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary<\/b><\/i><\/h4>\n